Tenbi's Shinobi
by Feeruk
Summary: Kamigami is not the only organization that works within the shadows to protect the world. When a serious threat is discovered, Konoha gets pulled in to Tenbi in order to keep people safe. The school year is about to begin and with Tenbi Academy going Co-Ed again after ten years as girls-only, how will the students and teachers fair with Naruto Uzumaki in the mix? Typical harem fic.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** **I own neither Naruto nor Maken-Ki. This story is simply a work of fanfiction that's being written and published without any intention of making a profit.**

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

 _ **(Pairing spoilers below, skip to the title to avoid.)**_

 **Warnings:** AU, Older (18), Powerful (God-like), Intelligent, OOC-ish Naruto. Story will follow the events from the Maken-Ki manga and anime with various characters and other elements of the Naruto-verse thrown into the mix.

This is a rewrite of my previous Naruto/Maken-Ki crossover that, as of very recently, I have deleted. If certain scenes or lines of dialogue within the first few chapters sound familiar, that's probably why.

Many things about Naruto's past will be changed to varying degrees in an attempt to rationalize changes I've made both to the Maken-Ki universe as well as Naruto's personality – particularly his increased intelligence, maturity, and how he views/interacts with women he finds attractive.

Expect errors or inconsistencies in character descriptions, ages, and all manner of other small details. I usually rely on the wiki for a given universe to double-check such information, but the Maken-Ki wiki doesn't include basic information on many of the characters.

 **Pairings:** Given the perverse nature of Maken-Ki anime and the manga to a bit of a lesser degree, this will be a harem story. I'm comfortable confirming that Naruto will be paired up with Minori, Aki and Azuki by the end. I'll likely end up adding at _least_ one or two more to that list before the end, but I won't confirm anyone one way or the other until my decision is set in stone.

Takeru will be getting a harem of his own despite the fact that the manga seems to be leading towards him being solely with Haruko. As it was with Naruto, I'm comfortable confirming that he'll be paired up with Haruko, Inaho and Shiria. We'll have to wait and see about any others.

I fully intend to write explicit sexual content for this story eventually and there will be strong insinuation of sex occurring that is included on this site. Any scenes that have actual sex occurring within them, however, will be published off-site (likely on Archive of our Own) due to this fanfiction's guidelines against such material. When I've omitted or otherwise censored such a scene, I will include a note and direct you to where you can go to read the uncensored chapter.

* * *

 **Tenbi's Shinobi**

 **Prologue**

* * *

The morning had dawned warm and cloudy. As the sun continued its slow rise from beneath the horizon, the streets of Tokyo were already beginning to fill with people making their daily commute to their workplace. Among one of the large congregations of said people, Naruto Uzumaki lazily strode along the sidewalk with half-lidded eyes as he pointedly ignored the glances or outright stares that were directed at his person. The bright orange fabric he often regularly attired himself in coupled with his bright, spiky blond hair typically made him stand out like a sore thumb amidst groups of people, so the attention currently directed at him was hardly an unusual occurrence.

Taking a sharp turn as he came to the door of a tall office building with a large swirl-like symbol jutting off of the upper portion of it, he waited patiently for the glass doors to slide open before he stepped inside. Seemingly going along with the building's rather typical appearance from the outside, the interior looked to be rather standardly furnished. A single plush-looking couch covered with black leather and numerous matching chairs rested against the left wall with a long, low table holding a wide spread of magazines in front of them. To the right was a notably larger table that held a spread of simple foods – crackers, cheese, small slices of meat and the like – along with what looked like a pot of coffee and numerous bottles of water. Straight ahead of the entrance, meanwhile, were two elevators shafts on either side of a large receptionist desk that looked as if it had risen up seamlessly from the concrete floor. Finally, engraved within the wall that was behind the desk was the same swirl-like pattern that was prominently displayed on the building's exterior.

Continuing to stride forward, Naruto idly reached up to the bridge of his nose and pulled down the skin-tight black mask that had been covering the lower half of his face. After failing to stifle a yawn, he forced his eyes to open a bit further and directed his gaze towards the black-haired woman typing away at something behind the receptionist desk. A smile promptly pulled at his whiskered cheeks.

"Hey Shizune."

"Hello Naruto-kun." The woman's gaze left her computer monitor for a moment to send him a small smile. "How are you this morning?"

"Tired. I had a late night."

"I can tell." Giggling softly, she raised a hand and pointed to her left. "Hokage-sama is expecting you."

"Any idea what he needs me for? It isn't like the lazy bastard to schedule me to come in this early."

"A long-term mission judging by the forms he requested to be filed earlier." Shizune's brow furrowed slightly. "Exactly what the mission entails, however, I'm afraid I don't know. Hokage-sama saw fit to fill out the paperwork for it himself."

' _Huh…must be wanting to keep whatever it is somewhat under wraps then.'_

"Alright, thanks. I guess I better head up there if it's serious enough that Kakashi-sensei of all people actually doing the paperwork for it on his own." Letting his eyes drift over the desk, a toothy grin crept across the blond's face upon noticing the corner of a green-covered book poking out from underneath a stack of papers. "By the way, if you're going to be reading his books while you're working, you might want to find a better hiding spot for them."

Slipping away from the desk as Shizune sputtered and her face began flushing, Naruto quickly called the elevator, stepped inside, and pressed the button for the top floor. As the polished metal doors slid shut and he started to rise, he glanced over his reflection and smiled.

' _This really does look a lot more awesome than my old suit used to.'_ Reaching down, he tugged at the black hem of his long-sleeved orange shirt and idly brushed his fingers over the fine black fabric that was used to craft his pants. _'I'm really glad that girl at the store managed to convince me to buy a few of these; I'll have to thank her sometime if I ever see her again.'_

 _DING!_

The elevator doors quickly slowly slid open to reveal a large and spacious room that Naruto quickly stepped into. Sunlight beamed in through the large glass windows that served as three of the four walls while the only furniture to speak of was a large, u-shaped wood desk, several cushioned chairs in front of said desk, and a few bookshelves lined with scrolls tucked against some of the windows on the left.

Behind the desk, meanwhile, was a familiar silver-haired man who glanced up only briefly before turning his gaze back down and continuing to write. Despite the fact that a tilted headband covered one of his eyes, it didn't seem to impede his work in the slightest. A skin-tight black mask – one identical to the one now hanging loosely around Naruto's neck – rested over the bridge of his nose and concealed the lower portion of his face from view.

"You're late."

"Am I?" Naruto shrugged, moving forward and plopping down into one of the provided chairs once he had gotten close enough. "Sorry then, guess I got lost on the road of life."

Kakashi's writing hand suddenly stilled as he tilted his head back up. Though his mask concealed his mouth, the way the corners of his exposed eye curved upwards made it obvious that he was smiling.

"Really? I suppose I should be thankful that you aren't even later then." Kakashi chuckled softly as he placed his pen down. Reaching off to the side, he picked up a manila folder that had been laying on his desk and held it out towards the blond. "Your mission."

Taking the folder, flipping it open and letting his eyes drift over the page, the first thing that drew Naruto's attention was the image of a sizable school that was overlooked by a large mountain in the background. _'That looks oddly familiar…'_ Giving up on the idea of recalling the name of the place from memory alone, he glanced down to the text beneath the picture.

"Tenbi Academy? Isn't that off-limits for us?"

"Under most circumstances," Kakashi confirmed, propping his elbows up on his desk and lacing his fingers so that he could rest his chin upon the make-shift bridge they formed. "The Japanese government usually likes to handle issues that occur within Tenbi's special district either internally or contract the work out to their watchdogs at Kamigami. Even going back as far as the Second's files, I only found a handful of occasions we've ever received requests to send anyone there. "

"Uh huh…" Flipping to the next page as he read on while Kakashi spoke, Naruto's brow quirked upwards upon seeing brief profiles of several individuals next to what was presumably a picture of the person. The image of a busty redhead in an orange track suit caught his eye for a moment before he continued on. "Those few occasions being situations where the area was under a serious threat of some sort, I'm guessing?"

"Naturally."

"This time's no exception?"

"Of course not. Page eight should give you an idea of how serious this situation is."

Doing as instructed, the blond quickly flipped to page eight where his gaze fell upon an enlarged black and white picture of a pale man with long black hair sitting at a café. Despite the casual setting and the numerous people surrounding him at nearby tables, he was staring directly at the camera with a smirk on his face and a cup raised upwards as if giving a toast at the moment the still image had been taken. While such a sight wasn't anything ominous in and of itself, Naruto felt his eyes widen and rage begin to bubble up within his chest.

"Orochimaru." He nearly spat, the very name itself left a nasty taste in his mouth.

"That picture was taken two weeks ago outside of a café that was less than a kilometer away from the Academy. You can see why we've been contacted now, I presume?"

"Yeah." Naruto nodded and forcefully tore his gaze away from the image of one of the only people in the world that he genuinely despised. "I can't imagine Kamigami has many people who could handle him without destroying the entire area in the process."

"I was assured r _epeatedly_ that they would have the situation under control if so many of their operatives weren't already engaged in other matters."

"So they pretty much confirmed it then?"

"More or less." Kakashi chuckled, his visible eye curving upwards again for a moment before his expression quickly sobered. "Still, it's likely for the best that they've contacted us. If Kamigami were to become involved, they would likely deploy Minerva-san to handle the situation. Whatever Orochimaru may be planning, I have a strong hunch that it would be wise to keep her as far away from it as possible."

"Why? We both know she's more than capable of handling herself. Sure she would probably cause a lot of collateral damage, but still…"

"…Naruto, we've been actively pursuing Orochimaru for five years now. In all that time, how many times do you think we've caught him on camera barring instances of direct confrontation?"

"Uh…" the blond balked, feeling as if he was missing something obvious by the tone of his old mentor's voice. "I dunno, five? Ten?"

"One."

"…Including this one?"

"Including this one. Not only is that fact suspicious enough on its own, but he's looking directly at the camera without even a token attempt to obscure his face. He definitely wants to be seen to lure someone to him, the only question is who that someone is. I would ordinarily think it was you, but I'm inclined to believe that isn't the case this time."

"Why not? We know he wants immortality, wouldn't it make since for him to take over my body given…" Naruto trailed off and let his hand drift down to rest over his stomach.

"You aren't wrong, I'm certain he would be happy to take your body if he had the opportunity to." Kakashi sighed, his eye closing as he paused for a moment. "However, if he wanted to specifically lure _you_ to Tenbi, I think it would have been someone else that was purposely caught on camera."

Upon hearing those words, the familiar image of a black-haired, onyx-eyed teen came to the forefront of Naruto's mind. Even as anger bubbled up within his chest again, he idly raised the hand that had been resting over his stomach to rest over the right side of his chest.

' _Sasuke.'_ Snarling internally, his anger increased ten-fold as his eyes closed and flashes of a fight in a large, abandoned valley flashed through his mind.

"See what I mean?" Kakashi's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. Opening his eyes again, Naruto quickly noted that the man's eye was once again open and gazing directly at him. "If I even hint at Sasuke's existence around you, you start getting angry."

"…They wouldn't know that."

"Maybe not, but I'm not naïve enough to believe that Orochimaru wouldn't expect it. If Sasuke described your personality to him in any real depth – something I fully expect has happened by this point – he would have a strong inclination that you would absolutely detest him after the Madara fiasco."

Naruto merely gave a stiff nod in acceptance of that point, purposely trying to turn his mind off to prevent bad memories from resurfacing.

"Maybe even more so than even immortality, we know that Orochimaru wants power. So, if his aim isn't to specifically lure _you_ into whatever trap he may have set, I can only that his target is Minerva-san considering what her Maken contains."

"You don't think…"

"I do," Kakashi countered quickly. "I don't know what he could possibly be planning to do with it, but we've both learned to never underestimate how power-hungry that man is again."

Naruto nodded stiffly once more. "What exactly am I supposed to do at Tenbi then? We both know it's nearly impossible to actually pin down where he is to a tee, even…even the Pervy Sage couldn't pull that off."

"True; not to mention there's the fact that you aren't nearly as skilled at stealth or infiltration as Jiraiya-sama was. That's why I'm not sending you there to hunt him down."

"…Say what now?"

"It won't be your objective to track down Orochimaru." Kakashi's gaze suddenly moved slightly upwards and he inclined his head forward slightly. "It's his."

Blinking rapidly in confusion, Naruto turned his head back over his shoulder only to nearly jump out of his chair as he spotted a familiar pale figure standing directly behind him.

"Hello Naruto-kun."

"Sai," the blond greeted tersely, his hand resting over his heart in an attempt to calm it down. "Still a fan of sneaking up on people, I see."

"I have found it brings me some degree of amusement, yes, but I would not go so far as to say that I am a fan of it."

"That's…" Naruto began before pinching the bridge of his nose and sighing. "Nevermind."

"Take a seat, Sai."

Bowing slightly, the pale teen as ordered and eased into the chair to Naruto's right, shifting the sheathed tanto on his upper-back slightly to the side as he did so.

"As I was saying before, Sai is going to be the one attempting to track Orochimaru's location." Kakashi began, his gaze resting upon Naruto again. "Your part in this mission is to two-fold. First, you will be posing as a student within Tenbi Academy to both act as a deterrent for any potential plans Orochimaru may have involving the place and protect the students if he decides to be reckless and do something anyway. Secondly, you're there to act as Sai's back-up if he manages to locate Orochimaru's base or if he is discovered before he can finish the job."

"…You're sending me and Sai to pose as students? Does that _not_ sound like a terrible idea to you? Do you not remember how awful my academy grades were?"

"You're the only one who will posing as a student; Sai will be posing as nothing more than a civilian." Kakashi's eye curved upwards again. "And while you raise a valid point about your grades, it hardly matters here. Not only is there no requirement for you to be a good student, but Tenbi Academy isn't quite like what our shinobi academy once was."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Hokage-sama is saying that Tenbi Academy is a location where young individuals who possess an Element of some kind go in order to train their abilities." Sai's voice, as per the usual with him, contained only the slightest amount of emotion. "Pages nine through eighteen of the folder you hold contain information about the academy's teaching methods, rules and regulations that I have been able to verify through various means."

"So a school filled with undisciplined kids, basically?"

"Untrained individuals ranging from the ages of fifteen to eighteen, to be specific."

"So undisciplined, horny teenagers. Great, even better." Naruto sighed and looked back over to meet his superior's gaze. "When do we leave?"

"Tomorrow." Kakashi paused for a moment. "Barring any objections on your part, I'd like Sai to use your parents' old house as a base of sorts to operate from. It's secure and secluded enough that I don't believe he'll be discovered there so long as he's cautious about being followed."

"That's fine. It's not like I intend to use it anytime in the immediate future."

"Good. You still have a few days before the school year starts, so I want you to help Sai get the place cleaned up and then set up a meeting with Rokujou Minori – the principal of Tenbi Academy. She will know who you are and why you're there, but I want you to discuss the rules you'll be expected to follow while acting as a student in her territory. Understood?"

"Understood." Naruto nodded firmly before looking down to the hefty folder he still held onto. "I guess I've got some reading to do."

* * *

 **End**

 **Post Notes**

Apologies to those of you who liked my previous Naruto/Maken-Ki story, but I was only two chapters in and already unhappy with it, so I elected to simply get rid of it and start over. Hopefully I'll be a bit happier with this one. I don't intend to abandon this, but given that I'm likely to publish a new Naruto/LoK crossover that I've been working on within the next few weeks, I don't know how much attention I'll be directing towards it either.

Not that it will really matter considering how infrequently I actually update anything I publish. *Cough*

Anyway, as I stated within the previous fic, I don't particularly enjoy Maken-Ki's storyline, but I really did find myself liking a few of the characters – Minori in particular – for some reason other than the gratuitous amounts of fan service the show had. Thus, this is a thing. Hope you all enjoy.


	2. Irony

**Disclaimer:** **I own neither Naruto nor Maken-Ki. This story is simply a work of fanfiction that's being written and published without any intention of making a profit.**

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

I needed to name a character within this chapter that, at least as far as I'm aware, was never named throughout the manga / anime – they were only referred to by their relationship to one of the secondary characters. If I was mistaken and she was indeed named, please kindly DM me with the manga chapter / page where it happened if you remember off-hand.

This chapter is rather brief. I usually like to maintain a minimum of 3,000 words or so for updates, but I really wanted to include this part and it felt weird lumping it in with the start of the next chapter even with a note about a relatively brief time skip. Sorry for that, but I hope you enjoy anyway.

* * *

 **Tenbi's Shinobi**

 **Irony**

* * *

"I really should have come back every now and then to keep this place relatively clean. This is ridiculous." Naruto brushed his bandage-wrapped right hand over his shirt in a futile effort to remove some of the thick layer of dust that now caked its front.

I concur, this is a rather absurd level of filth." Unlike the blond, Sai had the foresight to dawn an apron over his usual attire and wear a piece of cloth tied over his hair – both of which were now sporting a fine layer of dust and other grime. "If I may ask, why did you neglect this place? It surely must mean a great deal to you."

"Of course it does." Looking up and meeting his friend's genuinely curious eyes, Naruto sighed. "It's complicated, alright?"

"I suspected as much, but I'm still rather confused on the matter. You hold your friends and their belongings in incredibly high regard, but you do not do the same with your parents?" Pausing for a moment, Sai's head cocked slightly to the side. "Does it have something to do with the fact that you're an orphan?"

"…"

"Ah, it seems I have upset you. My apologies, I am still trying to understand the finer details of emotional decorum."

"It's alright, Sai. I've started to expect as much from you."

"…I am uncertain as to whether or not that is a compliment."

"That's good because I wasn't sure whether or not I meant it to be one."

"So not only are you dick-less, but thoughtless as well? I will have to make a note of that."

Still staring at his fellow teen, Naruto's eyebrow ticked in irritation. He opened his mouth to respond, but immediately shut it again as his mind failed to produce the words that would express his annoyance at the moment.

"…That was a joke."

"I know it was a joke, dammit! We've gone to the hot springs, you obviously know I have a dick!"

 _Knock Knock Knock_

The two teens froze momentarily, their gazes quickly darting over to the front door of the house where the sound had originated from. After a few moments of silence, the sound echoed through the empty hallway once again.

"Were you expecting someone, by chance?"

"No." Naruto's brow furrowed slightly. "Kakashi would have definitely called first and I doubt the principal even knows we're here yet."

"A trap by Orochimaru, then?"

"Doubtful. One of his traps would've probably made this place explode by now." Looking down and giving one last futile swipe at his shirt to remove the dust, Naruto sighed and began moving towards the door. "I'll guess see who it is and what they want really quick. Keep working for the time being, I'll holler if I need help."

"Understood."

Quickly striding down the hallway, Naruto quickly came face-to-face with the front door. Grabbing the knob, he slowly pulled it open while keeping the majority of his body behind the make-shift barrier. His eyes quickly fell upon two redheaded women – one middle-aged, clad in a simple blue dress and seated in a wheelchair while the other was a teenager positioned behind her – waiting patiently on the doorstep. After a moment, he pushed the door open a bit wider.

"Can I help you ladies?"

"M-Minato?"

Eyes shooting down to specifically meet the gaze of the older redhead, Naruto quietly noted how she looked as if she had seen a ghost. Her eyes were wide and her hands were gripping a small plastic container she held in her lap so tightly that her knuckles had turned white.

"Minato was my father," he admitted, forcing a small smile to his lips as he did so. Even years after having learned of his parents, it still stung a bit to be compared to his father – let alone be confused for him. "I'm Naruto."

"O-oh. Of course, please forgive me." The older redhead bowed down as well as she could from her seat. "You resemble him so much that I lost my senses for a moment."

"It's not a problem, I've gotten rather used to people who know him mistaking the two of us. I assume you knew my parents, then?"

"Oh yes, my husband and I knew them quite well. They were the most wonderful neighbors – we couldn't have asked to live next to nicer people."

' _She must be part of the family that lives across the street.'_ Raising his gaze for a moment, Naruto glanced over at the modestly-sized home; aside from his parents' own, it was the only house within a several mile radius.

"Ah, but where are my manners? My name is Shinatsu Yui and the deviant behind me is my daughter Azuki."

"O-oi! I'm not a deviant!" The newly-dubbed Azuki protested, her cheeks reddening in embarrassment.

Naruto chuckled in amusement at the sight. Given the girl's attire – a pair of loose-fitting pants, a white t-shirt and a pair of sneakers – and the bandage stretching across the bridge of her nose despite any signs of injury, the bright blush seemed almost out of place on her. Still, it was a rather cute look.

"Uzumaki Naruto," he introduced himself fully, smiling warmly at the duo. "It's a pleasure to meet both of you."

"Likewise," Yui chirped in return, her daughter nodding in agreement behind her. "If I might be so bold, are you intending on moving into the place? We saw the lights on and were curious as to whether or not we would have new neighbors soon."

"Well, I won't personally be staying here since I'll be attending Tenbi Academy when the school year starts next week, but my friend Sai will be staying here in the meantime."

Having been observing the surprised looks of both the other and the daughter before him as he spoke, he completely neglected to notice an all-too-familiar presence nearby.

"You called?"

"Gah!" Nearly jumping in surprise, Naruto whipped his head around to see Sai lurking almost directly behind him. "You have _got_ to stop doing that!"

"Stop what, exactly?"

"Don't play dumb with me, you know exactly what I'm talking about." Naruto's brow twitched in annoyance. He could see the slightest hint of a smile pulling at the pale teen's lips.

"So are you two…you know…?"

Whipping around, Naruto opened his mouth to quickly reject what Yui had been suggesting, but found himself in stunned silence as Sai suddenly stepped up to his side and hooked an arm over his shoulder and around the back of his neck.

"Yes. We are lovers."

As the eyes of the two women went wide in surprise of a different sort, Naruto felt a bit of rage bubble up in his gut as the image of a hauntingly familiar face passed through his mind's eye. Channeling a small amount of Chakra into his elbow, he moved his arm forward and then jerked it back – slamming the joint into Sai's gut. The aforementioned teen let out a pained grunt as he went tumbling back end-over-end for several feet.

"No, we're not like that." Letting a sharp breath pass through his nose, the blond clenched his jaw to try and alleviate some of the misdirected anger that had suddenly sprouted up within him. "Please just ignore him, he's rather awkward in social situations."

"That's…quite alright." Though she looked a bit confused, Yui laughed softly. "We all have our faults, after all."

"True enough."

"So, I believe you said you'll be attending Tenbi Academy?"

"Yeah, I've been transferred there this year," he mimicked the agreed-upon false background that had been included within the file.

"How lovely!" Yui clapped her hands together. "I've never met anyone else who attends the same school as my Azuki-chan before!"

"Ah," Naruto quickly redirected his gaze to the younger redhead. "You go to Tenbi too then?"

"Yeah, I'll be a second-year once it starts up again."

"Nice. First-year on my end, obviously."

"I figured as much." Azuki made a show of leaning slightly to the side before quirking up an eyebrow. "Looks like you already have pretty good control over your Element for a first-year."

"Heh, I would hope so. I've been training with it nearly all my life." Naruto chuckled before running his gaze over the girl once again. "You're a physical specialist, I'm guessing?"

"Uh huh. Same for you?"

"Partially," Naruto grinned. "I'm a Chakra specialist."

"Really?" Azuki went wide-eyed at his affirmative nod. "Heh, well this year should be rather interesting then."

"I'm just going to sit here and pretend that I know what you two are talking about. Don't mind little old me~."

Azuki gave an exasperated roll of her eyes before she looked down and addressed her mother. "You remember what I told you about Element? That energy that me and everyone else at Tenbi have?"

"I…think so?" Naruto could almost see the confused swirls spinning in Yui's eyes as she looked up. "That's different than your Maken thingy, right?"

"Right. Everybody at Tenbi has some sort of special energy that they can use, but since there are so many different kinds that a person can have, we just refer to that energy as a person's Element so that we don't have to memorize them all. Chakra – the one this guy says he uses – is really rare and powerful. I think Minori-sensei is the only person at the school who has it."

"Oh, I s—" Yui began, but ended up cutting herself off as she started coughing harshly. She quickly reached down to her lap and withdrew a handkerchief that had been laying beneath the container; once she had it in-hand, she held it up to her mouth and coughed into it.

' _She must be pretty sick,'_ Naruto observed silently, noting how the younger girl's expression quickly changed to a concerned, stricken look. _'I wonder what's wrong with her.'_

"S-sorry," Yui apologized demurely once her coughing fit had seemingly passed. "I thought today was going to be a good day, but it seems I was mistaken."

"It's alright. Do you want to come in for a glass of water or something? It's still pretty dusty in here, but I'm sure the least we could do is manage to find a clean glass."

"I'm afraid that would likely only make me have another one of my fits. Besides, we wouldn't want to impose while you're still getting your friend settled in."

"If you're sure…"

"I am, but thank you for your kind offer." Wiping the cloth over her mouth and doing a rather valiant effort at trying to hide the spots of blood that were now on it, Yui dropped it back into her lap before picking up the small container and holding it out in front of her. "Here – a welcoming gift. I made some dumplings on the off-chance that someone was already moving into the place after so long."

"Ah, thank you for your kindness." Naruto bowed at his waist before reaching out and taking the offered food.

"No need to thank me," the older woman smiled softly. "Your parents did the same thing for my husband and I when we first moved in, so I simply wanted to do the same for someone who might have been moving in here. It's only fitting that it be their son of all people, don't you think?"

"I suppose so. Still, thank you very much."

"My, my, how well-mannered for a boy your age; you certainly take after Minato a lot more than Kushina, don't you?" Looking up towards her daughter, she smiled as widely as she could without exposing her teeth. "That's my subtle way of trying to tell you that he's definitely boyfriend material, just so you know."

"Mom!" Azuki's face quickly turned bright red as she glanced at the blond before glaring at her mother. "Now is not the time for jokes like that!"

"Eh? Who said I was joking?"

"That's it! We're leaving!" Azuki promptly disengaged the wheelchair brake and spun her mother around, quickly pushing them back towards their house.

' _That woman has one Hell of a mischievous side. I think I like her already.'_ Naruto grinned and ignored how his own cheeks had reddened slightly at how forward she was. _'I guess I can play along with her a little bit to try and make her day.'_

"This may be goodbye for now, but I will see you at school where our love can truly flourish, Azuki-chan~!"

The girl in question froze up in the middle of the small street for a moment as his words reached her. Spinning around, she held up both of her middle fingers and aimed them in his direction.

"I'm not some kind of deviant like you apparently are! You have to wine and dine me before we go that far!"

It took a while for the meaning of his words to sink in, but Azuki flushed a brilliant shade of red once again before she promptly turned back around. Yui's laughter, meanwhile, reached his ears easily.

"They certainly seemed like quite the odd pair, didn't they?"

Glancing over, Naruto wasn't surprised to see Sai standing by his side again, a hand pressing over the part of his abdomen that he had struck earlier.

"You said you've read a lot of books about literature, social interaction and other stuff, right?"

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"Did any of them ever describe what irony was?"

"Not that I recall, no."

"You might want to find some new books then."

* * *

 **End**

 **Post Notes**

The next chapter will be another build-up chapter where Naruto meets Minori. The chapter after that will be the start of the canon timeline.


	3. Maelstrom meets Calamity

**Disclaimer:** **I own neither Naruto nor Maken-Ki. This story is simply a work of fanfiction that's being written and published without any intention of making a profit.**

* * *

 **Tenbi's Shinobi**

 **Maelstrom meets Calamity**

* * *

 **(One Week Later)**

"Yeah, that's the place. About how quickly could you make it here?"

" _Depends on how fast I feel like moving, really."_

"I'd consider it a real favor if you could do it as quickly as possible." Naruto smiled softly. "Still, I don't want you to go throwing your back out or anything, so don't push yourself."

"… _You know you're getting hit for that, right?"_

"Eh, we both know I'd probably end up doing something to get hit anyway. Might as well go ahead and get it out of the way as early as possible."

" _Fair enough,"_ the feminine-sounding voice on the other end of the line hummed for a moment. _"I've got an old friend in that area, so I suppose I could reason away swinging by sometime next month. That soon enough for you?"_

"I get the feeling it's gonna have to be if I know what's good for me."

" _Well how about that? It seems you can learn a few useful things after all."_ The owner of the voice chortled for a moment, but it quickly trailed off into a rather lengthy silence. _"Any sign of the snake so far?"_

"No, nothing yet." Naruto sighed. "We've only been here a few days though, so it'll probably be a while before we find anything."

" _Mmm,"_ the voice hummed in agreement. _"Who are you paired up with?"_

"The painter."

" _Ah. I suppose he's good at tracking if nothing else; it's a bit risky for my taste given how lacking in combat prowess he is compared to the two snakes, but I'll trust that the old scarecrow knows what he's doing. …Promise me you'll be careful?"_

"I promise, Baa-chan."

" _Good."_ The woman suddenly heaved out a relieved-sounding sigh. A few moments passed in silence before the sound of her heels clicking off of a hard surface started echoing through the phone. _"Well, now that the serious stuff is out of the way, I could actually use a favor from you too."_

"Oh? What's that?"

" _Send me some of that God-given luck of yours through the phone!"_ Soft music, chatter and various over-the-top sound effects suddenly started coming through from her end and grew louder by the second. _"Las Vegas is amazing, but I could really use a few wins to bounce me back from what all I lost on the slots last night!"_

* * *

"Are you certain you do not want any back-up? There is a small possibility that this could all be an incredibly elaborate trap."

"Yes Sai, for the last time, I'm sure I don't want any back-up," Naruto stated without bothering to look up from the task of wrapping fresh bandages along his right arm – the unnatural white coloration of the limb contrasting sharply with the lightly tanned skin of his bared chest. "I can always get in touch with you on the off-chance that things go wrong, so you should use the time to keep searching for the snake den. Speaking of, any new updates?"

"Nothing substantial, I'm afraid. You will be the first I notify of any substantial findings barring inopportune circumstances for communication."

Humming in understanding, Naruto finished wrapping up his arm and quickly slipped into a baggy orange t-shirt. "Did you toss my bag into the car?"

"Yes, the bag containing your belongings is safely stored in the trunk of the vehicle."

"Super. How much time do I have before I need to leave?"

"Approximately three minutes depending on the level of traffic you encounter in Tenbi if you wish to arrive at the mall on time."

"Alright, I should get moving then." Standing, Naruto patted down his pockets and nodded to himself as he ensured he already had the keys to the small car outside, his wallet and his phone upon his person. After a moment, he turned towards Sai and offered the awkward teen a grin. "I guess this is goodbye for a while."

"I suppose it is." Slowly, Sai's head cocked to the side. "Would it be considered awkward in this situation to say that I will miss your companionship?"

"Only if you say it in a weird way like that." Chuckling, Naruto extended an open hand forward and, after seeing it, Sai hesitantly reached out and shook it. "I'll miss you too. Try to keep the place in good shape for me, will you?"

"Do not worry, I will be sure to maintain its current level of cleanliness and repair. I highly value not wallowing in filth unlike certain other people."

"…"

"…That was a joke."

"Your jokes suck."

* * *

' _Is this seriously the place we're supposed to meet?'_

Standing in front of a sizable building within a large mall, a bead of sweat slowly dripped down Naruto's face as he gazed up at the large sign that read 'Makaron Mansion'. Letting his gaze drop from said sign to the glass windows that ran around the place, the bead of sweat grew a bit larger at the sight of the attractive, uniformed girls within. The fact that the aforementioned uniforms were maid uniforms of all things caused a strong surge of nostalgia to well up within his gut.

' _I should call just to make sure I didn't mess up the directions or anything.'_ Quickly reaching into his pants pocket, he pulled out his cell phone, tapped a few buttons on the surface of the screen and brought it up to his ear.

 _Riiiiing Riiiiing Rii—_

" _Hello?"_

"Hello there," he greeted the owner of the feminine-sounding voice on the other end. "Rokujou Minori-san, yes?"

" _The one and only! I assume you're Naruto?"_

"Sure am. Sorry to bother you on the phone, but I just need to confirm something really quick seeing as I'm in the mall now. We _are_ supposed to be meeting in a Maid Cafe, right?" Letting his eyes wander upwards as he finished speaking, a hint of a smile pulled at his lips as he happened to see a rather busty girl bow down low to a pair of male customers who were leaving the building. While the uniform she wore was far more modest than many others he had seen being worn by female employees at similar establishments in the past, it still left a fair amount of cleavage visible that he ogled from afar.

" _Yeah, that's the place. I'm already seated at a table, so just tell whoever's working the door that you're joining me inside."_

"Will do; I suppose I'll see you shortly." Not waiting for a response, Naruto ended the call and slipped the device back into his pocket. Moving forward at a brisk pace, he took a passing glance at his reflection as he passed a nearby window and found himself mostly pleased with what he saw. Barring the bandages wrapped around his arm which could be explained away with relative ease, most his regular attire didn't really make him stand out in a crowd. The only item that would – and the one he briefly lamented not having – was the skin-tight mask he had grown used to wearing over the lower half of his face. Unfortunately, despite the small comfort said item would bring him, wearing it in public in the middle of spring would only lead to him being viewed with suspicion unless he looked ill.

"Welcome back, Master."

Walking through the door to the café, the cute redhead he had been ogling from afar bowed to him after giving a customary greeting. Despite knowing that it was likely mandatory she both say the line and bow to everyone who walked through the door, Naruto couldn't stop a slight blushe from crossing his cheeks as his eyes instinctively trailed downwards to her cleavage once again. _'If all the girls working here are like her, I imagine this place is rather successful.'_ As she raised her head back up, he forcefully tore his gaze upwards so that he wouldn't be caught blatantly staring; upon doing so however, his eyes widened in surprise upon seeing a familiar face. The redhead's own eyes widened in recognition a moment later.

"Well thanks, but it's actually my first time coming here." Naruto idly raised a hand and scratched the back of his head as he made a point to keep his eyes locked on the girl's own. "It's nice to see a familiar face despite that though. How have you been, Azuki-san?"

"I…uh…" Azuki trailed off, clearly a bit befuddled about how to respond. "I'm fine," she finally stated before slapping a forced smile over her face; her voice grew noticeably strained as well. "Shall I show you to a table, Master?"

' _Well she definitely isn't happy.'_ Naruto idly observed the fact that she clenched her fists tightly enough to whiten her knuckles. _'I wonder if she's still holding a grudge over that comment I made when we met last week.'_

"I'm supposed to meet someone who's here already, actually."

"Oh," Azuki looked genuinely surprised once again; her smile and voice became a bit significantly less strained. "In that case, please allow me to help you find who you're looking for. Can you tell me their name or what they look like?"

"Ah, yes. Her name's Rokujou Minori. Sh—"

"Yo! Over here!"

Glancing over to a nearby booth that held the source of the voice, Naruto's eyes went wide once again as he swept over the form of the woman he recognized as the principal of Tenbi Academy. Her long, red ***** hair was tied up into a ponytail with a black bow and her bangs neatly framed her face. Clad in an orange tracksuit with the sleeves and pant legs rolled up to her elbows and knees respectively and a pair of pink flip-flops that were currently dangling off of her toes, she looked remarkably relaxed. Still, despite her the simplicity of her clothing, the large amount of cleavage that her partially unzipped top left exposed along with her naturally curvy figure ensured that she was incredibly eye-catching.

' _The pictures Sai managed to get of her really don't do her justice.'_

"I guess that's her." Naruto chuckled and offered Azuki a toothy smile. "Please excuse me," he stated softly before moving over towards the booth.

"Trying to be slick with Azuki-chan of all girls, eh?" Minori questioned from her seat as he grew near, her eyes bouncing between him and the young waitress as she idly swirled around a nearly empty glass of water with a large smirk stretching her lips.

Slipping into the booth across from Minori, Naruto opened his mouth to respond, but found himself cutoff by a rather masculine voice echoing from somewhere in the back – presumably the kitchen.

"Azuki-chan~! I need you to start waiting tables again please!"

"Got it!" The uniformed redhead's voice echoing from behind him; her steps echoed softly off of the floor as she approached the booth. Once she stepped up alongside him, she offered a small, genuine-looking smile and a curtsy; it seemed as if whatever had upset her was no longer an issue. "Master, Mistress, please allow me – Azuki the Maid – to serve you today. Can I start you off with something to drink while you look through our menu?"

' _Heh, I guess she's pretty good at this whole thing so long as she isn't surprised by someone she already knows.'_

"Sure. Do you serve tea here?"

"We do – several different kinds, in fact."

"Perfect. I'll have a cup of whatever type you would recommend then please."

"Very well. Would Mistress care for a refill while I fetch Master's drink?"

"Yeah, I could go for some more. Thanks," Minori replied, still grinning as she handed over her glass.

"Of course. I'll be back in just a few moments."

"Bit of a smooth talker, aren't you?" Minori asked once Azuki had moved well out of earshot. "Probably not even in Tenbi for more than a day and you're already working on getting yourself a little girlfriend? Pretty impressive there, Blondie."

' _Heh, you left yourself way too open for this one.'_

"Ah, well, what can I say? I thought I was just going to be meeting someone to talk about a bit of business, but it turns out it was a ruse to lure me into a date at a Maid Café. It's a bit of a weird choice to go for a first date in my opinion, but I suppose you can always make up for that later." Acting on a spur of the moment thought, Naruto smirked and wiggled his eyebrows in a way that would have made his old mentors proud.

A momentary silence overtook the duo, Minori blinking a few times in rapid succession before bursting into laughter. "Hahaha! Oh man, I definitely had you pinned right." Propping an elbow up on the table, the redhead leaned forward until her chin was resting in her upturned palm. "Still, don't you think you should stick to flirting with girls your own age?"

' _Pft, Pervy Sage would literally start rolling in his grave if I ever agreed to something like that.'_

"Now why would I ever agree to something that silly? If I did, I wouldn't be able to flirt with the gorgeous woman in front of me right now."

A light blush quickly colored the woman's cheeks even as her grin stretched a bit further. "Skipping right to flattery now, huh? They teach all the boys in your little organization how to charm a woman?"

"Hah! No. No, no, no," Naruto repeated, a brief fit of laughter overtaking his self-control. "Just the thought of one of my friends trying to flirt like I do is…oh man," he sighed out, another few chuckles escaping him as he began to calm down.

"Heh, that bad?" Minori quirked a brow upwards as her blush began to fade away.

"Probably worse than you could imagine. I'm only an exception because most of the people who I learned from were massive perverts." The chuckles that had been escaping him quickly died off, a small, bittersweet smile taking their place. "I think a few of my friends might have been able to pull something like that off with a straight face eventually, but..."

Minori visibly winced as his voice trailed off. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"Don't worry about it. Trust me, nearly every client does or says something that brings up a bad memory at one point or another, so I've had to get somewhat used to talking about dead friends." Smiling reassuringly, though noting that his new acquaintance still looked quite remorseful, Naruto quickly thought of something to change the topic of conversation. "Speaking of personal things, I don't think I've actually introduced myself properly yet, have I?"

"No, but there isn't really a need to either. I make it a habit to keep up-to-date on the bigger names in Kamigami and Konoha." The redhead smirked. "I heard that your Hokage was going to send someone to ensure we didn't have trouble, but I wasn't expecting his ace of all people."

"Heh, I wasn't exactly expecting to be sent here either. Still, Kakashi-sen—er, Hokage-sama, I mean, thinks that I'm the best suited for this. So, here I am," Naruto gestured to himself with a wave of his hand.

Minori opened her mouth to reply, but cut herself short as the sounds of approaching footsteps drew near.

"My apologies for the wait," Azuki said as she came to the table and set their drinks of choice in front of them, pausing shortly afterwards as she shot each of them a quick glance. "Would Master and Mistress like more time to decide on what to order or would you like to do so now?"

' _Whoops, I haven't even bothered to look at the menu yet. Oh well, it isn't like I'm going to get anything different than usual.'_

"I'm ready if you are, Dear." Naruto's tone could have almost effortlessly passed as genuine. Locking eyes with eyes with the woman across from him, an amused grin pulled at his lips.

"I've been ready, Darling. You're the one who has been keeping me waiting." Minori expression mimicked Naruto's own as she turned towards Azuki. "I'll just take my usual."

"Got it." The teen laughed softly, something that often accompanied an order that a waitress was all-too-familiar with. "And you, Master?"

"I don't suppose you serve ramen here, do you?"

"We don't. Sorry."

"It's alright, just figured I'd ask." Naruto sighed. "I guess I'll take some curry and rice then if you have it."

Blinking rapidly a few times in surprise, Azuki's gaze slowly shifted from the blond to her principal and back again. "Well then, that makes this easy. Two orders of curry and rice. I'll be back with your orders shortly."

"Oh, is that your usual order?"

"Mhmm."

"A sign that we're meant to be, maybe?" Naruto inquired humorously, giving his brows another wiggle as he did so. "Well, that and the fact that you're wearing so much of my favorite color."

Minori had laughed right along with him up until the end. Once he had finished, however, her eyes widened and a nearly child-like glee suddenly began sparkling within them.

"Why _wouldn't_ I be wearing the most glorious color that has ever graced man's eyes?"

"…Okay, don't take this in a creepy sort of way, but I think I might have fallen for you a little bit just now." Naruto chortled as he propped his elbow up on the table and mimicked the woman's earlier action. "You're beautiful, you have awesome hair _and_ you even love orange unlike all of the heretics? I can already tell you're an amazing person."

"Oh? Is that all?" Minori asked, a blush blossoming on her cheeks once again. "Do go on, I rather enjoy being complimented."

"Well in that case…" Naruto trailed off, recalling what information Sai had provided about her in his report. "I hear you're supposed to be an Element genius."

"Hardly." The redhead raised a hand and scratched the back of her head, clearly embarrassed as she used her free hand to wave off the praise. "I just worked really hard to get as good as I am, it isn't like I'm talented at what I do or anything."

"Ah, you and I are a lot alike there then. Still, I don't think someone would get a moniker like The Natural Calamity without doing _something_ to deserve it

"Ahaha, you already heard about that silly nickname?"

"Some of your old classmates didn't seem to think it was so silly." Naruto chuckled, remembering some of the many brief notes that Sai had written about her. "One of them even compared being hit by you to being hit by a tidal wave, if memory serves."

"I wasn't _that_ bad!" Minori looked angry for a moment before the emotion seemed to bleed away, leaving her looking slightly dejected. Reaching over, she grabbed her new glass of water and brought it up to her lips. "Everyone gets a little mad every now and again," she mumbled before taking a drink.

"Fair enough," the blond conceded with a smirk. "But I don't think most people would be able to beat over one hundred people into unconsciousness just because they got a little mad at something."

"Oh come on! It wasn't over a hundred people!"

"Oh? Sorry, I must've heard wrong then. How many was it?"

Minori suddenly looked a bit timid. "…Ninety something."

"Oh." Naruto broke into chuckles again. "You weren't even in the triple digits yet and nearly your entire class complained about you? Wow, what a bunch of sissies."

"I know, right?" Minori's timid look vanished as quickly as it had appeared upon hearing the blond's playful response. "I hadn't even gotten serious."

"Heh, I bet not. That Maken of yours probably would've burned the entire school down if you had actually taken things seriously."

"Probably." The principal nodded thoughtlessly before her brow rose in surprise. "Wait, you know about Dragon Ace?"

"Yup."

"How the Hell do you know about that? I practically never use the thing!"

"The key word there being 'practically.' You used it often enough back in your high school days for your old classmates to remember it."

"…Was it the same guy who said I hit like a tsunami?"

"Uh huh."

"Dammit Leo, you traitor!" Minori let her head slump down and slammed her forehead into the table with a solid _thunk_. "Ugh, I should've known he'd be the one who blabbed about that to someone. Freaking coward."

"Aw c'mon, it isn't so bad, is it?" Naruto reached out across the table and gave her a comforting pat on the arm. "It'll make your fights more difficult to win if nothing else and you seem like the kind of person who likes a good challenge."

"True, but I don't like my friends going off and talking about my abilities to strangers." The redhead slowly lifted her torso back up to a proper sitting position. "You never know what kind of people would use that against you, y'know?"

"I know all too well, unfortunately." Naruto forced a smile across his face. "But I think we've gotten a bit side-tracked. As much as I'm enjoying this small talk, we should probably get down to business."

"Right. Sorry, sorry." Minori perked up her posture slightly. "I've never done any of this ninja infiltration stuff before, so where should we start?"

"Well, this isn't exactly infiltration, truth be told; it's more bodyguard kind of work – a good thing considering I utterly suck at being stealthy." Naruto chuckled to himself at the very thought. "I guess where I'll be staying seems as good a place to start as any."

"Ah! I've actually got that covered…" Reaching down into her pants pocket, the redhead promptly withdrew a single key and slid it across the table. "I've got you set up to stay in a dorm with another kid so nothing looks too suspicious. You'll be in complex A, room seven. It's supposed to house three people, so you should have plenty of space."

' _Great. Well, here's hoping whoever it is isn't too much of a pain to deal with.'_

* * *

 **End**

 **Post Notes**

I'm not particularly happy or even content with this chapter, but it simply wasn't getting any better no matter how many times I tried to rewrite it. Apologies if it isn't up to my usual standards.


	4. Roomies

**Disclaimer:** **I own neither Naruto nor Maken-Ki. This story is simply a work of fanfiction that's being written and published without any intention of making a profit.**

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

This is another short chapter with no significant plot progression due to the following: Work is consuming a significant portion of the free time I once had, my interest in writing has waned a bit, I'm trash at writing filler between major plot points I have in mind and I'm a lazy piece of shit. Sob story over - let's do this.

* * *

 **Tenbi's Shinobi**

 **Roomies**

* * *

It was late into the evening by the time Naruto made his way to the dorm he was going to be dwelling within. It was larger than he expected; the building was composed of four different floors with a multitude of doors lining each of them. All things considered, it looked far more akin to an apartment complex than a dorm for teenage students.

There was no garage or nearby parking lot, so he was forced to park the car in his possession along a curb well outside the property; given his assignment though, he knew he wasn't very likely to be using it on any sort or regular basis. The only belongings he had brought along with him all fit into one bag, so it wasn't too arduous a task to carry his things a bit further than he normally would have.

Climbing up to the third floor with his bag slung lazily over his shoulder, Naruto chuckled as he felt his phone vibrate from within his pocket. He had exchanged numbers with Minori before they separated so they could get in touch with one another when necessary, but they had been texting back and forth about various unrelated topics ever since; he didn't mind that fact at all. In fact, he found himself enjoying the virtual conversation almost as much as he had enjoyed the face-to-face one. Minori seemed fun and was easy to talk to – a combination he rarely encountered when it came to the people he would be working on an assignment with.

Taking out his phone, he flicked it on and read the new message. The sentence he read seemed so absurd given her demeanor that he couldn't help but chuckle. _'Octopi, huh? Never would have guessed.'_ Pausing mid-stride, he sent the thought back as a text of his own and slipped his phone away again. Turning and idly observing the symbols on the doors he was passing, he resumed walking until he stood in front of the door simply labeled '7'

' _Ooyama Takeru,'_ he read the name listed beneath his own on a plaque attached to the wall alongside the door. _'Well, here's hoping he's as easy to get along with as Minori was.'_ The moment the thought crossed his mind, he felt his pocket vibrate again. Choosing to ignore the message until he got inside, he reached out and twisted the doorknob in front of him.

Pulling the door open, Naruto quickly jumped back out of sheer reflex as a pile of white packing boxes tumbled unceremoniously out of the room and onto the balcony. _'What the Hell?'_

"Oh crap! Sorry!"

Turning his gaze up from the boxes, the blond's eyes landed upon young man with unkempt brown hair and green eyes that lurked behind a pair of thin-rimmed glasses. Clad in a black t-shirt and a pair of green boxers, he quickly moved down the hallway of the room towards the door.

"I'm so sorry! I meant to get those moved before you got here, but I had so many that I kinda slacked off." Reaching a hand up, he rubbed the back of his head and laughed nervously. "I didn't mean for it to still be such a mess."

"It's fine." Naruto felt slightly annoyed in truth, but the younger teen looked so nervous that he couldn't bring himself to say anything. "I'm used to worse. Ooyama Takeru, right?"

"Yep, that's me!" The teen smiled, but he was clearly still quite nervous. "I should probably…" he trailed off and made a show of looking around at all the boxes still lining the hallway and the ones that had fallen out to balcony.

"Probably," Naruto replied. Offering the teen a small smile, he reached down and picked up a box. "I guess I can help you out, just let me go and put my stuff put down first."

"Ah, you don't need to do that. I should be the one t—"

"If I don't help, I think you'd be spending the whole night getting your things put away with how many of these things I can see." Stepping into the room as Takeru pivoted to the side to allow him entry, he spotted more piles of the boxes tucked into what looked to be the lounging area. "Did you bring everything you own with you or something?"

"Well…I mean…not _everything_."

"You must have an awful lot of things then." Naruto walked along the hallway and placed the box he held atop a relatively small stack. Moving into the small lounge room, his eyes went wide upon seeing even more boxes tacked no less than five high. Shaking his head and sighing in exasperation, he quickly spotted two doors – one on the left and one on the right – that were clearly meant to be their respective bedrooms. Turning around, he met Takeru's gaze and jerked his head towards the one on the right. "That one still free or did you already move some of your things in?"

"I haven't picked one yet, actually."

"I'll go ahead and take this one then. Be right back." Turning away from the teen, he wasted no time in moving towards his new bedroom. Opening the door, he quickly stepped inside and flicked on the light.

The bedroom had three full-sized beds that were spread a fair distance apart with a small nightstand in between them; aside from the furniture, it was rather Spartan with only a curtain-concealed window on the far wall and a small walk-in closet on the left. Still, he had slept in far worse places before well enough.

' _I should get back to Minori before I help the kid get settled in.'_ Setting his bag down atop the nearest bed, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone once again. Flicking it on, he read a message that, while knowing it was inevitable, made him sigh. Turnabout was fair play, but it didn't make it suck any less to be on the receiving end. Making up his mind on what he wanted to see, he set himself to sending a message back.

 _Hey, I only laughed because you don't seem like the type that would be scared by something like that. As for me… Well I'm not really scared of much anymore, but I guess if I had to pick one thing it would be ghosts._

* * *

' _This thing could really use some more color.'_ Looking at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, Naruto sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Clad in the Tenbi Academy boy's uniform, the blue jacket and pants contrasted sharply with his bright blond locks; it made him strike quite the handsome image, but the formal clothes felt stifling in comparison to his regular wardrobe. Thankfully, small though the blessing was, Minori had alleviated the worst of the stifling by pointing out a few loopholes in the dress code the previous day. Though the jacket was required, there was no requirement that the buttons on it had to be fastened nor that the included green tie had to actually be tied, so he left both undone. On a similar note, there were no rules regarding required footwear, so he was still able to wear his go-to sandals. Still, taking advantage of the loopholes of the dress code and wearing a comfortable black t-shirt beneath the jacket only got him so excited. At the end of the day, he was still attending an academy again no matter how different it was supposed to be.

' _Good enough.'_ Nodding sharply at his reflection as if to validate his own thought, he promptly turned and exited the bathroom only to be nearly bowled over by Takeru as he dashed into the room and slammed the door behind him.

"Sorry, I've really gotta go!" The teen's muffled voice echoed from behind the door. A relieved-sounding sigh and the sound of splashing water followed suit shortly thereafter.

' _Heh, he kind of reminds me of what I used to be like in the morning.'_ Smiling at the memories of how he too used to always get ready at the absolute last minute and practically run late, he returned to his room while reflecting on how far he had come. Stepping up to his bed, he grabbed his bag – now mostly empty after unpacking it – and slung it over his shoulder. From what admittedly little he knew about more typical academies, he figured he would need it to help carry things back to the room before the day was finished.

Moving back into the lounge, Naruto took a moment to marvel at how organized it looked now that all of the packing boxes were gone. It had taken well into the night, but between himself and his new roommate, they had managed to tuck all of the latter's things into his room. Fortunately, most of the boxes had been extremely light and easy to carry.

 _Knock Knock Knock_

The blond's body had tensed at the sudden noise, but he quickly calmed himself upon recognizing what exactly it was. Moving towards the door, he was four or five large steps away when it was slowly pushed open.

"Takeru? Are you here?"

' _I seriously forgot to lock the door last night? I really need to stop being so careless.'_

"Takeru?" The door creaked open a bit further while Naruto berated himself, the feminine voice growing a bit louder. "It's me, Haruko. I thought I could walk…" The voice trailed off as the owner opened the door enough to see him still standing in the hallway. Her blue eyes went wide in disbelief. "Takeru?"

"Nope." The busty, purple-haired girl blinked in surprise at his blunt response. He offered her a small smile in return. "I'm Naruto. Takeru's still in the bathroom."

"O-oh, that makes sense." A light blush came to her cheeks as she laughed nervously. "Sorry. I haven't seen him for a long time, so I thought…"

"Heh, it's not a problem." Moving forward, Naruto took a moment to slip into the sandals he had left by the door. Glancing at the girl out of the corner of his eye, he immediately recognized the uniform. "I take it you're attending Tenbi Academy as well?"

"Ah, yes!" The girl suddenly smiled and seemed far less nervous than she had before. Shifting the bag she held to the side in such a way that it didn't pull on the long ponytail trailing down from the left side of her head, she extended an arm forward. "My name is Amaya Haruko. It's nice to meet you!"

"Uzumaki Naruto." Turning to face her, he reached forward and accepted the offered handshake. "Likewise, Haruko."

"Your arm…" Haruko's eyes lingered on his bandage-wrapped hand. "Are you hurt? You should probably have the nurse take a look at that later today if it's serious."

"It's serious, but it stopped hurting a long time ago." Looking down at the appendage himself, he slowly twitched each individual finger to make a fist. He frowned briefly, but quickly tore his gaze back up to meet the girl's eyes and forced a smile to his face. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. It's just better to keep it covered so no one freaks out about how gross it looks."

"Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to draw attention to it or anything."

"It's alright, it happens. I'm going to head to the academy, but you can wait inside if you'd like. I'm sure Takeru will be out of the bathroom soon enough."

"Thank you." Haruko offered him an unsure smile as she stepped inside.

"You're welcome." Pivoting, Naruto slipped around her as she walked in and moved out onto the balcony of the dorm. Reaching back, he began pulling the door shut behind him.

"I hope you have a good first day at the academy, Naruto-san."

The statement was so unexpected that it caught him off-guard. Turning his head, he gazed at the purple-haired teen and blinked a few times in surprise. "Thanks," he offered after a few moments of silence. "I hope you have a good day as well." His hand lingered on the door knob for a few extra seconds before he pulled the door shut. Another genuine smile slowly crept up his lips.

' _That's the first time anyone but Iruka-sensei has said something like that to me. I think I can see why people like to hear it so much.'_

* * *

 **End**


End file.
